Interview – Miguel Migs
Miguel Migs is a prime example of musical captivation. A well known name throughout the clubs of the world, the man himself exudes pure style with his ability to defy the odds and continue to release music of breakthrough quality. Never compromising, and always true to his own personal eclectic taste, Migs has the power of his convictions, and his output has always stayed true to form, and, after only a few minutes, one can tell that his friendly and enthusiastic voice compliments his artistic output.
“My whole life, Miguel has been my name, explains Migs, whose real name is Michael Steward, commenting on his Californicated upbringing. “Migs has always been a nickname, when it came time for me to put out my first few records and i needed an artist name it was a real quick spontaneous name, and my friends were like “call yourself Migs, DJ Migs – it was really spontaneous.”
Spontaneity seems a catchall for Migs, who over the years has not only been r responsible for fronting his own band, the now defunct Zion Sounds, he has also been a stalwart on one of the world most successful house music labels, Naked Music. In addition to such lofty highs, Migs has also started two successful record labels – Transport Records and in 2004, Salted Music w.
”Salted is going great,” he remarks, laughing, “I picked the worse time possible to start a new label though. I did it because i wanted to do something new – but now I’ve done it for a year and a half and everything’s done really, really well.”
Yet Migs is anything but over-ridden by ego. His music is renowned for its soulful, laid back attitude and funky style – and he may be counted as one of the few successful DJs in the world who don’t necessarily pander to the dance floor in order to get the crowd pumping.
“When I’m DJing or producing I just do and feel what I’m into, it’s spontaneous and I take it from there. When I’m DJing I’m definitely not looking at the whole crowd pleasing thing – I’m just trying to do what I enjoy. I’m not trying to do anything groundbreaking except just trying to maybe play some stuff that’s a little more interesting – try new things, take a chance,” he says. The fact that by not attempting to innovate he accomplishes exactly that is not lost on him though, and yet this is tempered by his realisation that success in his chosen method of presenting his music is not always guaranteed.
“Sometimes it works better than other times,” he humbly admits. “Its all part of the excitement and creativity – you have to take that chance. You have to keep it fresh – and by doing so I try to keep myself inspired and maybe turn people on to new music.”
Having released over a hundred tracks, from remixes to original tunes, his un-wavering approach has garnered him accolades in many circles, and his remixing talents have been utilised by artists such as Kylie Minogue, Macy Gray and Lionel Richie. Yet it is in his original productions that his true soul shines, and the vicissitude of his music comes to the fore. The direction he has taken with his sound may have once been directly linked to his early influences, however as the years have passed, his influences have widened.
“I grew up listening to a lot of reggae and a lot of classic rock,” he says. “When I started Djing around 90/91 and messing around with my friends equipment I started getting mostly into hip hop and dancehall, those were early inspirations – at the same time I was really captivated by soulful music. I’ve always listened to and loved all kinds of music, and there is no way to categorise that.”
It is obvious that Mig’s need to explore new horizons stretches towards thus far un-realised projects, and one can see that he has the direction he wishes to travel in firmly mapped out. “I’d love to start a whole new live project, I need more hours in the day thought to be able to do it – its definitely on my list of priorities in the upcoming years to put a live act together. I’m ready for it, I’ve wanted to do it for years – it’s just a matter of finding time,” he remarks.
Regardless of future projects, Migs is firmly planted in the now, and his output and drive seem in-line with his future ambitions. “I’m working on a new album right now, I’m trying to definitely give it more of a live feel – its quite song orientated, with very funky guitars and such did a couple things with Junior Reid, couple things with Aya, couple things with my boy Tim Fuller – some real soulful funk – it has a really broad spectrum. I’m trying to figure out right now whether I’ll release it myself or if I’ll put it out on another larger label, so I’m trying to decide on that but I’m hoping it’ll be out by the end of the year.”
Amongst his hectic production schedule, Migs also has his hands full with the extensive touring that a prominent dj performs, and when asked what his fans can expect on his upcoming tour, Migs laughs, his excitement obvious. “Oh man,” he says. “Expect a spontaneous night on the dance floor and a funky night out.
“I’ve had a lot of great times down here in Australia, the people are really nice and cool – the beaches are great! Everyone’s usually been pretty supportive and pretty receptive to the music – I guess that’s always the fun part about it, you never really quite know exactly what will happen…”
Tags: junior reid, michael steward, naked music, salted music, transport records